From Shukhov’s wait in sick bay to the body search
by Volkovoy
Sitting in sick bay with the inattentive Kolya, Shukhov
notices how quiet everything is. There are not even any mice scratching,
since the camp cat has caught them all. He notices how the numbers
on his jacket have worn off, and makes a mental note to get them
traced on again, to avoid a punishment. Feeling his aches, Shukhov
dreams of two or three weeks in which he could simply sleep. But
the new doctor, Stepan Grigorich, is unlikely to prescribe such
a rest, since he believes that hard work heals all ills. As Shukhov
meditates, Kolya continues copying out the poem he has written,
which he has promised to show to a colleague the next morning. The
narrator tells us that Shukhov would not have understood the poem,
and does not even seem to know what a poem is. Shukhov is confused
about why each line begins with a capital letter. Kolya finds that
Shukhov’s temperature is 37.2 degrees Celsius
(99 degrees Fahrenheit), slightly too low
to excuse him from work. Kolya tells Shukhov he can linger in the
doctor’s office if he wishes, but warns that doing so is risky, and
recommends that he return to work.
Shukhov goes back to the hut of Gang 104,
where Pavlo, his Ukrainian deputy foreman, greets him politely.
Shukhov finds his ration of bread on the table with a bit of sugar,
and weighs it in his hands, reflecting on how all the portions at
the camp are below regulation weights. Shukhov breaks the bread
in two. He puts one half in his jacket and stitches the other into
his mattress so it will not be discovered during the routine search
of inmates’ quarters. Similarly, Alyoshka hides a notebook in which
he has copied out half of the New Testament.
Gang 104 is ordered outside for
the search. Panteleyev, one of the gang’s members, does not join
them since he is at headquarters, snitching on one of his fellow
prisoners. Shukhov squeezes over to the side of the crowd, seeking
out the artist to retrace the letters on his uniform. He watches
the artist, a little old man, paint on the letters and numbers,
comparing his graceful motions to those of a priest anointing a
believer with holy oil. While waiting for the artist, Shukhov is
tantalized by the cigarette of a fellow prisoner named Tsezar; another
inmate named Fetyukov is similarly enraptured by it. However, Shukhov
prides himself on not staring greedily at the cigarette as Fetyukov
does—for him, doing so would mean losing his dignity. Finally, Shukhov
asks Tsezar for a puff, and Tsezar offers him the rest of his cigarette.
Analysis
Kolya’s poetry seems like a frivolous activity when compared
to the hard labor required in the camp. Solzhenitsyn brings up poetry
in order to question the significance of creative endeavors in an oppressive
regime. Kolya keeps literature alive in a harsh world. But Shukhov
shows little understanding or interest in Kolya’s poetry, and Shukhov’s
attitude toward it implies that it is useless in his life. Shukhov’s
puzzled remarks about how each line of the poem begins with a capital
letter directly below the previous line suggest that Shukhov has
never even seen a poem before. In this scene, poetry is not a lofty,
liberating force. As we see Kolya’s poem through Shukhov’s eyes,
it seems merely a funny way of writing. In fact, poetry may in fact
endanger Shukhov’s health, since Kolya lets his poetry writing distract
him from the more immediate task of caring for Shukhov. Solzhenitsyn
does not condemn creativity as a whole. Rather, he implies that
it must be more than idle fancy. One Day in the Life of
Ivan Denisovich itself is an example of a work of creative expression
with a deeper significance, in that it broke political taboos and
galvanized people against the Soviet regime.
Alyoshka’s fixation on the Bible is an example of a positive
relationship between a prisoner and writing. Alyoshka sees literature
as a mode of salvation. His studying of the New Testament allows
him to ignore the harsh physical and psychological conditions of
the labor camp. In this sense, literature has allowed Alyoshka to
find bliss even while his physical life is miserable. At one point
Shukhov looks at Alyoshka smiling calmly in the freezing cold, and
almost envies him his inner peace, showing that Alyoshka has a strength that
the other prisoners lack. That he stashes away his New Testament
to keep the guards from confiscating it just as Shukhov hides his
bread demonstrates how vital a part of his survival Alyoshka considers
the Bible.
While Alyoshka finds inner peace through religion,
Shukhov finds it through his struggle for survival. Though he envies
Alyoshka’s calmness, Shukhov is aware that Christian faith could not
play such an overwhelming role in his own life. Shukhov is more
practical than the spiritual Alyoshka. But like Alyoshka, Shukhov
needs sustenance. Solzhenitsyn emphasizes the parallel needs of
Shukhov and Alyoshka by showing Alyoshka studying his New Testament
at the same moment that Shukhov is studying his half-ration of bread.
Shukhov needs to be fed with physical bread and Alyoshka needs to
be fed with spiritual bread. This parallel plays on the Christian
use of bread as a symbol of spiritual sustenance. While Alyoshka
seeks nourishment for the other world, Shukhov seeks it for this
world. In both cases, nourishment is precious and indispensable.
